Reel seats have long been used for securing a reel to a fishing rod. Ideally, the reel seat is easily adjustable, thereby permitting the user to remove the reel from the rod with little effort.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,347,742 shows a known reel seat body having an externally threaded end and a fixedly mounted hood which holds a reel foot in place. A slidable hood is provided that opens toward the fixed hood. The seat body includes a step which defines the end of travel of the slidable hood. The fixed hood includes a reel leg-engaging member which is slidably displaceable toward and away from the slidable hood as well as an elastic material for backing up the member.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,918,852 also discloses a typical reel seat including a tubular fixture body having a screw thread, a fixing holder, a pusher which is movable toward or away from the fixing holder, and a threaded ring for operating the movable pusher. In addition, a plurality of locking grooves extend lengthwise of the fixture body. These locking grooves are spaced at predetermined intervals circumferentially of the fixture body. A projection, engageable with one of the locking grooves, restrains the threaded ring from loosening prematurely. As a result, the projection can be changed between engaged and disengaged positions with one of the locking grooves.
While the above-discussed patents show how the industry is striving to make reel seats more reliable and easy to use, there has been no development of reel seats capable of accommodating reel feet of different size. Typically, reel feet have a wide range of lengths and heights. In an effort to make reels compatible with different brands of reel seats, manufacturers have begun to standardize the dimensions of reel feet for particular classes of reels. This standardization has enabled manufacturers to design reel seats capable of accommodating reel feet for a specific class. Despite these standard dimensions, however, fisherman have still been limited to the particular classes of reels that can be used with a given reel seat. For example, a fisherman who fishes small streams and rivers can not switch reels and use the same rod with a larger reel since the reel foot will not fit into the smaller reel seat. Simply put, different types of fishing require different types of reels, and different reels have reel feet of varying dimensions.
Currently, a fisherman has two options with respect to using two different size reels. First, he or she may replace the reel seat before using a different reel with a particular rod. However, replacing a reel seat is one of the most difficult modifications a fly fisherman could undertake. Secondly, he or she may purchase at least two rods with different reel seats; one which accommodates a large reel foot, and another which accommodates a smaller reel foot. This is unduly expensive.
To date, the fishing industry has failed to provide a reel seat capable of accommodating reel feet with different dimensions. Accordingly, fisherman are limited as to reel choice for a given fishing rod.